mapping B.napus

Greetings Arabidopsis wizards. I have frequently heard the
claim that genetic studies of Arab. as a model system will facilitate
genetic work in many other plants. I am now contemplating a project
that involves mapping disease resistance genes in Brassica napus
(Canola) using RAPD markers and the bulk selection method. My
question is about the colinearity of linkage groups between B. napus
and Arabidopsis. Has anyone any ideas on this subject?
I am thinking about a long term strategy of map based cloning
of B.napus resistance genes. We have segregating backcross populations
derived from a classical breeding approach of introgressing resistance
genes into agronomic varieties. Once we locate RAPD bands that are
linked to these genes by bulk selection, it should be possible to
find two markers that closely flank each gene. Then the RAPD bands
can be cloned and used as a probes. Here is where we would like to make
the jump to the ordered YAC library of Arabidopsis. Our flanking RAPD
bands should hybridize to Arab. YAC clones that are very close to each
other. Then the set of overlapping Arab. YAC clones that span the distance
between out RAPD markers could be used as hybridization probes to pull
out a bunch of B. napus lambda clones. We could then assemble a contig
of these lambda clones- and we should find our gene somewhere in the
center of the contig (at a spot that corresponds to the map distances
from the flanking markers).
Can we jump back and forth from Arabidopsis to Brassica?
Is this strategy at all feasible? I invite your comments- better
here than as hostile reviwers of our grant proposal.
-Stu
--
Stuart M. Brown If you can remain cool when all
U. of Manitoba, Dept. Plant Science Around you are in panic,
Winnipeg, Manitoba, CANADA
browns at ccu.umanitoba.ca Then you surely misunderstand the situation